Winners are selected for their excellence in instruction (including learning experiences outside the traditional classroom); their capacity to animate students and engage them in the pursuit of knowledge and understanding; their innovation in teaching methods and/or curriculum development; their demonstrated commitment to cultural diversity; their ability to motivate and challenge students and for evidence of excellent advising.

Each recipient receives $1,000.

A writer and scholar, Escaja has published more than ten volumes of essays, poetry, theater and fiction. Her areas of expertise include 20th/21st century Spanish and Latin American poetry; gender studies; turn-of-the-centuries literature, society and digital media.

Shepherd teaches courses in collaborative consultation, special education assessment, research methods, and systems of services for individuals with disabilities and their families. Her research interests include collaboration among schools and families, transition processes for youth with disabilities and their families, and state and school wide implementation of inclusive policies and practices.

Prior to joining the UVM faculty, Kingsley worked on Wall Street for nearly a decade. Today, her research contributes to the understanding of international political economy, political risk and non-market strategy, and her teaching focuses on both strategy and the political environment of business.

Wilkinson, who holds a doctor of veterinary medicine degree from Cornell University, is an expert in equine science. She teaches courses on basic equitation; horse health and disease; and advanced equine instructing techniques, among other topics.

The awards memorialize Robert H. and Ruth M. Kroepsch and her parents, Walter C. and Mary L. Maurice. Robert H. Kroepsch served as registrar and dean of administration at UVM from 1946-56. His wife, Ruth, graduated from UVM in 1938 and her father, Walter Maurice, graduated from UVM in 1909. All four of them were teachers.